Harvey: UH Cougars still get no respect

The Coogs had plenty to celebrate after pummeling LSU Monday night. (Gerald Herbert/AP)

By most objective criteria, the Houston Cougars should have been selected by the NCAA on Tuesday to play host to this weekend’s Super Regional in the Division I College Baseball Tournament.

Instead, the Cougars will travel to Austin for a best-of-three series against Texas scheduled for Friday-Sunday with the winner advancing to the College World Series.

Based on RPI rankings, which take into account a team’s record, strength of schedule and poll standings, the Cougars finished last weekend’s regionals as the No. 2 team in the nation behind Virginia. Texas was sixth.

UH (48-16) had a better record than UT (41-19) and was ranked higher in both major polls, 16th and 15th, to the Longhorns’ 29th and 20th. Texas can point to its head-to-head victory in their only game against each other this season and its strength of schedule, third to the Cougars’ 13th.

But the Cougars were more impressive in their regional, winning at Baton Rouge, La. with two victories over host LSU, which, even after the losses, still has the nation’s 10th best RPI. Texas beat host Rice in the Houston Regional, but had to play the Owls only once. The Longhorns advanced with two victories over Texas A&M, which has the nation’s 31st highest RPI.

Why did the NCAA select Texas as host of the Super Regional?

Longhorns coach Augie Garrido hit it on the head after the 4-1 decisive victory over the Aggies at Reckling Park on Sunday night, when he said, “If it’s about money, they’ll come to Austin.”

Texas fans also are known as more supportive of most of their athletic teams than Houston’s fans, which one might argue would have been a reason to reward the Cougars for their superior season and still be certain of big crowds in Houston because Longhorns fans would have come. Two of their three games against the Aggies last weekend set Reckling Park records for attendance.

The Cougars faced a similar situation after the 2013 football season, when they were passed over for the more prestigious New Era Pinstripe Bowl at Yankee Stadium because bowl officials believed Rutgers would draw better against Notre Dame. In fact, the opponent didn’t matter because Notre Dame was going to sell out the stadium under any circumstances. Houston deserved to be there, not only because it had a better record–8-4 to Rutgers’ 6-6–but beat Rutgers on the road, 49-14.

Houston instead was relegated to the BBVA Compass Bowl in Birmingham, Ala., where it played Vanderbilt.

UH athletic director Mack Rhoades said Tuesday he didn’t blame Cougars fans for being upset about the latest slight. But he recognizes the university needs to do more to redevelop its reputation as a major athletic power that will draw fans. The new football stadium opening next season should help, as would a proposed renovation of Hofheinz Pavilion.